Barbados Cherry, Delivered and Planted in SW Florida
Barbados cherry, also called acerola, is an evergreen fruit shrub that does well in Southwest Florida's heat and sandy soil, and it makes a good edible hedge or small specimen. Pink flowers and bright red, tart cherries come in flushes through the warm months, packed with vitamin C. It wants full sun and drainage, plus frost protection when young.
- Light:
- Full sun
- Water:
- Low to moderate; drought tolerant once established, but fruit sets better with regular water
- Salt:
- Moderate; handles coastal breezes
Barbados Cherry
Ask for a photo of the actual plant we would deliver.
Barbados Cherry sizes we deliver and plant
Every size below is planted by our crew, set at the right depth and watered in. Send the size and how many, and we text back a planted price, usually within the hour during the day.
| Plant | Sizes |
|---|---|
| Barbados Cherry | Call for Quote |
Barbados Cherry in SW Florida, at a glance
- Mature size here
- 6 to 12 ft tall and nearly as wide
- Light
- Full sun
- Water
- Low to moderate; drought tolerant once established, but fruit sets better with regular water
- Salt tolerance
- Moderate; handles coastal breezes
- Cold tolerance
- Leaves and tips burn near 30°F and a hard freeze can kill young plants; coastal Lee and Collier are usually fine, and inland yards should cover young plants on frost nights
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 4 to 6 ft on center for a hedge
- Florida native
- No
- Botanical name
- Malpighia emarginata (also sold as M. glabra)
Where Barbados Cherry works in a SW Florida yard
Use Barbados cherry as a loose fruiting hedge, a corner shrub, or part of a backyard orchard where you can reach the fruit. It grows 6 to 12 ft, so space hedge plants 4 to 6 ft apart and keep it at least 5 ft off walkways, since ripe fruit is soft and messy underfoot.
Loquat, guava and fig are easy fruit-tree neighbors.
- Edible fruit hedge
- Informal privacy screen
- Backyard orchard shrub
- Coastal-yard fruit planting
How our crew plants it
Sandy, well-drained soil and full sun suit it. Set the root ball level with the ground in a hole twice as wide as the pot, then mulch 3 inches deep. Keep the roots moist every day or two through the first month, tapering to your assigned days; Lee and Collier allow extra watering on new plantings.
We plant, water in and clean up.
Care after planting
- Mulch widely and keep it topped up, since root-knot nematodes can be a problem for Barbados cherry in sandy soil.
- Water deeply through the dry months for better fruit set, working within your assigned days.
- Prune lightly after a fruit flush to shape it; it takes shearing as a hedge.
- Feed lightly in spring and early October with a slow-release fertilizer, and skip nitrogen and phosphorus from June 1 to September 30.
What to watch for
- Root-knot nematodes weaken plants in sandy soil, showing up as wilting and slow decline that mulch only slows.
- Ripe fruit is soft, bruises easily and ferments fast, so pick often to avoid ants and fruit flies.
Barbados Cherry questions we hear
Does Barbados cherry grow well in Cape Coral and Fort Myers?+
Yes. It likes heat, sun and sandy, well-drained soil, and it tolerates coastal breezes. Frost is the main risk, since leaves burn near 30°F and young plants can die in a hard freeze. Coastal Lee and Collier are usually safe, and inland yards should cover young plants on frost nights.
When does Barbados cherry fruit?+
It fruits in flushes from spring through fall, usually a few weeks after each round of flowers and often after rain. Blooms can open from about April into November in Florida. Pick the cherries when fully red, because they soften quickly and do not keep.
Is Barbados cherry the same as Surinam cherry?+
No. Barbados cherry (Malpighia emarginata, acerola) has pink flowers and tart red fruit very high in vitamin C. Surinam cherry (Eugenia uniflora) is a different plant that Florida lists as invasive. They share the word cherry and little else.
Updated October 2026
Get a planted price on Barbados Cherry
Tell us what and how many. Quinten prices it from the nursery's live list and texts you back, usually within the hour during the day.
Only need the plant delivered, no planting? It is on our nursery's list at Palm & Plant Co.
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We deliver and plant across Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Naples, Estero, Bonita Springs and about an hour around.